Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer told reporters that he was aware of former receiver coach Zach Smith’s 2009 domestic violence arrest while Smith was working for Meyer as a grad assistant at Florida. Smith was fired by the Buckeyes on Monday, three days after his ex-wife filed a protective order against him for trespassing on her property in May. Speaking at his Big Ten media day press conference on Tuesday, Meyer said firing Smith was done “in the best interest of our team.” Meyer continued that while he was not aware of Smith’s most recent actions, he was notified when Smith was arrested for the felony charge of aggravated battery back in 2009. “Zach was an intern, a very young couple. As I do any time, that I imagine most coaches or people in leadership positions, you receive a phone call, you tell your boss, let the experts do their jobs. We’re certainly not going to investigate. It came back to me that what was reported wasn’t actually what happened. Shelley and I actually both got involved because of our relationship with that family and advised her counseling and wanted to help as we moved forward.” Meyer added that “there was nothing” to reports of police being called in 2015 over a potential domestic violence recurrence. The Ohio State coach addressed Smith’s most recent run-in with the law with a litany of coach-speak. “You press pause, get your mind right, step up, press pause to gather information, get your mind right to gather energy, then step up to do the right thing, and that’s the position that I hold.” Meyer’s revelation that he was aware of the 2009 incident at the time it happened sparked a series of questions from reporters. They asked if Meyer already knew about the 2009 arrest, and why Ohio State waited until the rest of the world found out to fire him. Meyer, a public employee, deflected when asked about the timing of the staff move, saying, “I’m not going to get into that, it’s personal. The decision was made, the details I was obligated to give, I gave.” You can watch Meyer’s full remarks here:
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Market: Wrexham win
Odds: 7/10 @
Hoping to reclaim their spot at the top of the National League table, Wrexham will host a struggling Chesterfield on Tuesday night.
Starting with the hosts, while Wrexham might have been disappointed after watching their FA Cup adventure come to an end away at Sheffield United earlier in the month, Phil Parkinson s side are enjoying a real National League flurry. Only continuing on what has been a stellar run of form, it is no secret that many have tipped the Dragons as a leading promotion pick in 2023. Knowing that three points on Tuesday night would see them climb back to the top of the table, the one-time Bolton boss will be calling on his high-flying squad to lay down another marker here. Last seen over the weekend putting in…
According to a recent report from Daily Express, Arsenal have been told they could sign Declan Rice for a manageable fee.
The belief is that West Ham United manager David Moyes thinks Rice is worth a British transfer record when he decides to leave the Hammers. However, the Gunners have been informed that it may not take quite as much as that in order to lure him over to North London.
His current deal with the club is believed to be lasting until 2024, and he has rejected an extension. The Gunners are interested in his services alongside Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City, and given that he’s only 24 years old, it’s not hard to understand why.
Alas, the main priority for Arsenal right now can t be focusing on transfers. Instead, they need to look…
UEFA will ask football s lawmakers to introduce a margin error for offside calls in a bid to clean up the VAR mess , Aleksander Ceferin has confirmed.
Players, coaches and supporters have criticised the implementation of technology since its infiltration of the Premier League for the 2019-20 season.
Disallowed goals for extremely marginal offside decisions have proved particularly contentious, with controversial incidents arising on a regular basis.
UEFA president Ceferin said he understood the frustration of fans and would take up the issue with the International Football Association Board (IFAB), the body responsible for the Laws of the Game.
If you have a long nose, you are in an offside position these days, Ceferin told the Mirror.
Also, the…
Manor Solomon has reached an agreement to sign for Fulham until the end of the 2022-23 season, after a FIFA ruling on Ukraine-based players.
The ruling stipulates that Ukraine-based players, who aren t Ukrainian nationals, can suspend their contract with their club.
The 22-year-old scored four goals in 16 league appearances for Shakhtar Donetsk last season before the competition was cancelled due to Russia s invasion of Ukraine.
Another FIFA regulation means that players who cancelled contracts with their Ukrainian clubs cannot be registered before the start of August, but Fulham have stated that they will be applying for an international transfer certificate on the first day of the month.
We ve got our Man. |
— Fulham Football Club (@Fulh…
In the past few days have been linked with a number of big name players, many of whom have come as a surprise given that the club are rock bottom of the Premier League table after 23 games. What isn t surprising however is the fact that the Swans are in the market for a goal scorer, having scored a feeble 14 times so far this season.
The latest name at the top of Carlos Carvalhal s shopping list is that of striker Andre Silva, according to , and the Swans will likely have to shell out close to £32m to secure his services. Silva signed for Milan in the summer but has failed to impress this season, mainly due to the fact that he is yet to score in the Serie A despite making 12 appearances.
Silva has proved himself to be a prolific scorer in the past however, and netted…
Arturo Vidal has called on Chile to build on their Copa America Centenario victory over Bolivia as they look to seal progression to the knockout stages against Panama.
The defending champions made a stuttering start to the defence of their 2015 crown as they were beaten by Argentina in the opening game of Group D.
In a repeat of the final 12 months prior, Chile were unable to replicate their triumph and found themselves needing a win over Bolivia to boost their hopes of qualification.
That duly arrived, though it came courtesy of a controversial late penalty decision, and Juan Antonio Pizzi s side now only need a point against Panama to secure their progression thanks to a superior goal difference.
Vidal, the scorer of both goals against Bolivia, insists …
Fulham striker Moussa Dembele said he is happy at the club, despite interest from Chelsea and Manchester United.
Dembele, 24, signed for the west London club in August 2010 and has scored seven goals in 60 Premier League appearances for the Cottagers.
The Belgian initially moved to the club as a striker, but has since been deployed further back, first in an attacking midfield role, and more recently in a deeper-lying central midfield role.
I m very happy at Fulham, so I m not in a hurry, he told Sky Sports.
Of course, it s normal they are big teams. In the end, we will see what s good for me.
Dembele has only one year remaining on his contract at Fulham and could leave the club for as little as 10 million pounds this summer.
…
Fabio Capello has revealed he expects Juventus to confirm their status as Serie A favourites on Saturday with a win over Roma.
Fabio Capello has revealed he expects Juventus to confirm their status as Serie A favourites on Saturday with a win over Roma.
The Old Lady lead the Italian top flight by five points and travel to the capital on the back of a comprehensive 3-0 Champions League victory at Celtic.
The Giallorossi, in contrast, are yet to win a league game in 2013 and recently sacked coach Zdenek Zeman.
Capello, who guided Roma to the Scudetto in 2000 before taking charge of Juventus four years later, made it known that while he is an admirer of the Olimpico side and their efforts to reinvent themselves, the Turin giants remain the benchmark on t…
Napoli will not be parting ways with Kalidou Koulibaly this summer, according to a report in the .
Manchester United, who have been actively pursuing their interest in the defender, have apparently been informed that even €150 million would not be enough to prize him away from Naples.
Napoli boss Carlo Ancelotti has recently confirmed that the Senegalese international s contract runs for four more years, with a buyout clause set at €130 million which doesn t kick in before the summer of 2021. The Serie A side are therefore in the strongest position possible and do not plan to accept any bids whatsoever.
Ancelotti expressed his belief that Koulibaly is the best centre-back in the world, and he will be a vital part of the team that will look to bring the eight…
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The 2018-29 season in Spain will come to a close this Saturday at Estadio Benito Villamarín, home of Real Betis. This venue will host the Copa del Rey final between FC Barcelona and Valencia. The reigning Liga champions will aim to end the season on a high note, while Los Che will try to secure another title to end their campaign strongly following a poor start to the year. This match will kick-off at 20:00 hrs BST.
FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona might have suffered a huge disappointment in the UEFA Champions League, but they cruised their way towards claiming another La Liga title and also won the Spanish Super Cup against Sevilla. Can they complete the domestic treble by winning the Copa del Rey…